Greetings from Denali National Park & Preserve

Our bus tour of Denali National Park started out with beautiful scenery, sightings of caribou, moose & ptarmigan, but we never expected to have the sighting of a lifetime. Our bus driver received a call on his radio that up ahead in a riverbed there was a caribou carcass that had been killed by wolves. The bus pulled over to the side of the cliff so we could look down on the caribou carcass and what looked like a large dark mass next to it. What we soon realized was that the large dark mass was a grizzly feasting on the carcass. Within a few minutes, another grizzly was spotted heading towards the carcass. The second bear circled around through the waters of the riverbed to get a closer look as the first bear reared up on its hind legs. We could see white claws slash and hear the guttural roars as their snarling teeth bit and paws mauled. Everyone on the bus was leaning to the one side, mouths open staring in disbelief. Then, the first bear turned and retreated, beginning a slow skulking walk, stopping occasionally to look at his lost meal. The victor began feasting on what was left of the carcass. The struggle we witnessed lasted seconds but it seemed timeless. Later, the bus driver told us that in the 30 years he had been working in the park he had never witnessed such a bear encounter as we had witnessed. We all felt truly fortunate.

Sincerely,
Sue